Trade cases

China’s expected move to impose anti-dumping tariffs on polysilicon from the EU, the U.S. and South Korea will result in price hikes, but increases will be minimal and manageable, according to research group IHS.

The European Commission announced its decision to push forth with the anti-dumping duties on Chinese PV imports into Europe yesterday (Tuesday) despite the wide opposition across the solar sector and the EU member states. 11.8% has been set as the start point and this will increase to 47.6%. Some applauded the decision while for others the alarms went off.

The European Commission released further details today on the import tariffs on Chinese crystalline photovoltaic imports it announced on June 4.

The European Commission imposed punitive anti-dumping duties on Chinese PV imports to Europe on Tuesday despite broad industry-wide opposition. The industry expresses its views to pv magazine.

The Alliance for Affordable Solar Energy (AFASE) is now gathering signatures against the impending EU anti-dumping duties on Chinese solar modules. This petition is a last minute attempt to stop the penalties. EU ProSun has now released a statement calling the action a “panic-maker”.

In May, the New York solar equities market took a page from the parable, “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” While investors reacted swiftly to favorable company reports – propelling those stocks prices higher (as in the case of JA Solar) and taking others along for the ride – analysts examining the fundamentals saw little or nothing to recommend.

Following the failure of an appeal to the World Trade Organization (WTO) decision against the domestic content requirement of its renewable energy FIT scheme, the Ontario Energy Department has announced plans to remove the offending provision.

While the politics surrounding the EU tariffs on Chinese photovoltaic modules continues to play out, possible effects of the tariffs are beginning to emerge. Manufacturers in Taiwan look set to benefit, but whether European cell and wafer capacity is ready or adequate to pick up the rest of the slack is yet to be seen.

Declining shipments, price pressure and a downturn in the domestic market took their toll on SolarWorld’s bottom line in the first quarter of the year: the one-time industry leader saw a significant drop in revenue while losses swelled dramatically.

EU Trade commissioner Karel De Gucht met with Chinese vice minister of Commerce Zhong Shan for an informal meeting on Monday in Brussels to discuss the EU-China solar trade dispute, according to an EU statement released on Monday. The EU might seek U.S. help, if necessary.